Residents shun Moorebank freight terminal meeting

Air supply: Wattle Grove resident Dominic Scutella, pictured with his children Samuel and Daniel, is concerned about the air pollution he says the Moorebank Intermodal Terminal will cause. Picture: Luke Fuda

MANY Wattle Grove residents stayed away from last night's invitation-only consultation session on the proposed freight terminal at Moorebank because they were too angry to attend.

One of them, John Anderson, said he did not attend because the government-run sessions did not tackle the real problems raised.

"They're not talking about the pollution that it will cause, which could lead to increased lung cancer rates," Mr Anderson said.

"The government has got blinkers on when it comes to this and they're just committed to making this happen, no matter what."

The proposed freight hub, which will hold 1.5 million shipping containers, could be developed on a 220-hectare block in Moorebank from 2015.

It is expected to bring an extra 20,000 daily truck movements to local roads.

A second private freight terminal proposed for the same precinct would bring the total number to 2.5 million shipping containers — more than the present freight movement in Port Botany.

However, the second hub seems unlikely to happen because, according to the state government, the present freight capacity, including the newly built nearby Southern Sydney Freight line can sustain only one terminal.

Dominic Scuttela said he was concerned by the impact the hub could have on the health of his sons, who have asthma.

"With so much more truck traffic on our roads our air quality is bound to be affected and that's really dangerous," Mr Scuttela said.

Moorebank Intermodal Corporation (MIC) chief executive Ian Hunt said that those invited to the meeting were chosen on the basis of the depth of their interest in the project and of their involvement in past consultation.

"By meeting community members, MIC aims to gain a deeper understanding of the community's concerns and ideas about the terminal, and how MIC can engage with the community most effectively," Mr Hunt said.

"MIC plans to hold its next set of community consultation sessions in mid-2014, when community members will be invited to ask questions and provide feedback on the environmental impact statement being prepared to apply for a concept approval for the terminal."